Two months after the General Election took place, we want to take look back and see what has happened since.
What positive steps has the new government taken toward creating a more humane asylum system? And what steps has it taken in the wrong direction? Let’s take a closer look.
✅ Rwanda plan scrapped
This was one of the first asylum-related decisions that the new government announced. After months of threats by the previous government to send people seeking safety here to a far-away country where they wouldn’t have support networks and their lives would be in danger, the new government announced the end of the plan.
Innocent, a Rwandan activist who wrote about the dangers that the LGBTQI+ community faces in Rwanda, said he felt “relief and happiness” after finding out that the plan had been ditched.
✅ The closure of the Bibby Stockholm floating prison
Another huge positive surprise was the new government’s announcement to close the Bibby Stockholm barge by the end of the year. Housing people in prison-like conditions is cruel and risks further traumatising people who have fled unimaginable dangers and life-threatening situations.
LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum are particularly at risk of harm and can face serious issues when forced to live in overcrowded conditions alongside other people from the countries they have fled.
Faisal, a non-binary person from Saudi Arabia that was recently granted refugee status shared their traumatic experience in the barge:
“It was hell; I felt so unsafe it was like being back in Saudi Arabia. […] I was treated very badly on the Bibby Stockholm. At first, I had to share a room. Then after a few days I got to have my own room, which was better. I had some privacy, and good facilities. But everything else was awful. The staff were also so cruel, they treated all of us staying there very badly. They are always watching you, searching you, making you feel anxious.”
✅ Promise to process the claims of those left in limbo
The new government has also amended the previous government’s Illegal Migration Act to ensure that held up asylum claims can be processed. Some LGBTQI+ people that we support have been left waiting for months or even years. More time waiting for a decision means that LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum here spend more time feeling anxious and uncertain about their future, often while living in unsafe accommodation.
Olu, a lesbian from Nigeria who was nearly killed back home and has recently been granted refugee status, said the following about her wait: “I cannot work or even volunteer at my desired job, it is very overwhelming and exhausting for me as I am sofa surfing and waiting on people or organisations to support me with literally everything”.
🚩 Plan to put more people in immigration detention
It was shockingly disappointing to learn about this government’s cruel plan to increase detention capacity. Millions of people voted against the previous government’s inhumane treatment of people seeking safety here, so continuing with heartless plans from the past is unwise and a missed opportunity for change.
Detention is harmful for everyone and further isolates people that have gone through immense trauma and need to rebuild their support networks around them. And LGBTQI+ people are particularly at risk of harm. They are bullied and discriminated against by staff and others inside, which re-traumatises those who have fled persecution.
As Joel, a Nigerian LGBTQI+ activist who was detained said, “As an LGBTQ+ person, the threats and dangers inside were ever-present. Homophobic bullying and harassment were common.”
Expanding the detention estate will only serve to benefit the private companies running detention centres, not build a fairer asylum system.
🚩 Pledge to send people seeking safety here back to danger
Much like expanding detention , this represents yet another important misstep by the new government.
Returning people to places they have fled from because their lives were in danger is cruel. Everyone deserves a fair hearing, but those who flee countries deemed ‘safe’ by our government may not get one.
Many countries considered ‘safe’ to return people to are in fact dangerous for certain groups, such as LGBTQI+ people. For instance Georgia and India were quietly added to the list of safe countries by the previous government, and in both of them there is evidence of persecution of LGBTQI+ people.
Noah, a gay man from Georgia who was granted refugee status recently told us: “You cannot live openly as a gay man in Georgia, or feel protected. If they hear that you are gay, they will kill you.”
Looking to the future
As we move forward, it’s crucial that the government listens to charities and communities, and works towards creating a fair and humane asylum system.
The coming months will be critical in determining whether this government will make a meaningful break from past policies or continue down a path that puts lives at risk